The Stem of Jesse: The Costs of Community at a 1960's Southern School

by Will D. Campbell

The story of racial integration at Mercer University

242 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 1994

About the author

Will Davis Campbell was a Baptist minister, lecturer, and activist.

Reviews

[David]

The story of my college years. Joe Hendricks recruited me to come to Mercer. Sam Oni lived across the hall. A tale of tough grace told by a master. The events he records changed my life, as they did the lives of many others. Praise be.

[M Christopher]

A disappointment. Will Campbell's unique diction was a delight in plumbing the depths of the human heart in "Brother to a Dragonfly" but is merely distracting in this rather clunky history of Mercer University. Campbell managed to sustain my interest when he was telling the story of Mercer's desegregation -- but why tell the story of another university when his own experiences were so compelling? -- but completely lost me when he shifted to the late 60s at Mercer and the quite-tame experience of the University dealing with what passed for the CounterCulture among a bunch of sweet, rich, Southern Baptist kids.
This one is only for those who dote on Will Campbell enough to put up with sloppy writing about a boring subject.